ProCon
Should Recreational Marijuana Be Legal?
Almost 600,000 Americans are arrested each year for marijuana possession. Pupils decide if marijuana should be legalized for recreational use after reading state-by-state laws and the top pro and con arguments. The resource also includes...
National Endowment for the Humanities
A Defense of the Electoral College
Each presidential election year, the debate about the electoral college rages. Michael C. Maibach's "A Defense of the Electoral College" offers young political scientists an opportunity to examine a reasoned argument for why the...
Newseum
Case Study: The Execution of Ruth Snyder (1928)
The case of the 1928 execution of Ruth Snyder takes center stage in a lesson that asks young journalists to consider the ethics involved in publishing an image of an execution. A series of discussion questions ask individuals how they...
Curated OER
Science and Cloning
Here is an ambitious lesson plan which has learners take a look at which nations came up with the most important scientific inventions/advancements during the 20th century. Focusing on group work, cloning is explored. All of the...
Smithsonian Institution
Racism and Removal: Japanese Incarceration During World War II
During World War II people saw how far the government's control would go, but it was at the expense of its citizens. The resource brings the conditions of Japanese American internment camps to light using primary documents. Scholars...
Center for History Education
Speaking Up and Speaking Out: Exploring the Lives of Black Women During the 19th Century
Young historians investigate the often-hidden history of free and enslaved African American women before the Civil War. Using a collection of primary and secondary sources, including speeches, diaries, and poems, they evaluate the often...
DocsTeach
What Kind of Leader Was General Douglas MacArthur?
For five decades, General Douglas MacArthur shaped US military involvement around the world. His career ended when he went toe to toe with President Dwight Eisenhower over the Korean War. Young historians evaluate the complicated command...
Anti-Defamation League
‘Migrant Caravan’ and the People Seeking Asylum
The controversies surrounding migrants seeking asylum in the U.S. have recently been a hot topic. To understand some of the issues involved, young scholars investigate the Migrant Caravans of 2018. A 10-page packet, including photos, a...
Curated OER
One Room School House Reading Lesson
Students explore schools during the Colonial period. In this American history lesson plan, students participate in a simulation of school days in Colonial America. Students visit a museum and use the schoolhouse as a setting for their...
UNICEF
Get Real on Climate
Climate change isn't just about a warming planet; it will affect humans' health, spread of disease, changes in heat waves and droughts, and changes in storms and wildfires. Participants explore global climate change through discussions...
Curated OER
The Great Energy Debate
High schoolers explore the controversial issues surrounding the energy debate in Canada. They research recent initiatives being taken in this area and analyze their implication. Students then assume the roles of pivotal stakeholders in...
Curated OER
How to Give a Small Group or Individual Presentation (Example and Notes)
In this oral presentation worksheet, students practice setting up an oral presentation about the death penalty. They work in a graphic organizer that includes the introduction, main topics and arguments, and conclusion in a format that...
Administrative Office of the US Courts
Engel v. Vitale
"Is school-sponsored prayer in public schools unconstitutional?" That is the question teams debate as they consider the arguments presented to the Supreme Court in Engel v. Vitale. The attorneys study the provided talking points and...
Curated OER
Debating Responsibility
Eighth graders explore the concept of responsibility. In this debating responsibility lesson, 8th graders view scenarios with differing perspectives to debate avoiding or taking responsibility.
Curated OER
Budget Debate: How Would You Balance the Federal Budget?
Students examine how to balance the federal budget. In this American economics lesson plan, students read the provided article "Congress Debates Cutting the Budget." Students then collaborate in small groups to determine how to balance...
Curated OER
Debate: "Indoor Air vs. Outdoor Air Pollution: Which Is the More Serious Threat to Public Health?"
Students work in teams to synthesize their air, asthma, air contamination, and environmental health knowledge as well as additional research to represent a particular point of view persuasively. They create a handout and presentatin...
Curated OER
Cartoons for the Classroom: Now That's Debatable!
In this current events instructional activity, students analyze political cartoons that feature caricatures of George Bush and John Kerry. Students respond to 3 talking point questions.
Curated OER
Teaching the Novel in Context
Students write a context paper. In this teaching the novel in context lesson, students view a primary sources to recreate the cultural and historical context of the novel. Students make the connection between the literary text and...
Curated OER
The Holocaust's Legacy
High schoolers investigate contemporary hate groups and then participate in a debate on tolerating their existence of the Holocaust. They work in groups to conduct research. Students use print and Web resources to identify one or more...
Curated OER
Unionism versus Secessionism in Virginia
Eleventh graders, in groups, analyze newspaper articles and then debate and discuss if Virginia should succeed from the Union or not.
Curated OER
Problems in Pollutia
Fifth graders, in groups, pretend as if they live in the imaginary kingdom called Pollutia. They make recommendations about environmental issues and give short speechs on how each problem should be solved.
Curated OER
Choices in War: What Would You Save First?
Students read and discuss articles about the current condition in Iraq. In groups, they role play as field generals for the coalition forces and they must create and present a visual defense plan for assigning 20,000 troops to protect...
Curated OER
Globalization: The Garment Industry in Southeast Asia
Students are introduced to the concept of globalization. In groups, they read primary source documents to view sweatshops from different points of view. They write a paper about the impact of globalization on the garment industry and...
Curated OER
Young and Restless in China
Students examine push and pull factors at work in China. In this modern China lesson, students research primary and secondary sources in electronic and print formats to investigate the plight of migrant workers in China today. Students...